LEESBURG, VA (March, 2019) – Loudoun Soccer is pleased to announce its elite boys teams will join the Boys Elite Clubs National League for the upcoming 2019/20 season.

The Boys Elite Clubs National League (Boys ECNL) is a nationwide league founded to improve the daily environment for boys youth soccer players through a collaborative, club-based development program featuring competition, player identification, and coaching and club development platforms. The league follows the structure and format of the Girls ECNL, the successful nationwide girls platform that has operated since 2007.

Loudoun Soccer joins a family of 54 “All-In” clubs, placing both its elite boys and girls teams in ECNL; Loudoun Soccer joined the Girls ECNL in Fall 2018.

“Loudoun Soccer is excited to become an ‘All-In’ ECNL club,” said Mark Ryan, Loudoun Soccer Technical Director. “We’ve experienced the structure and benefits the Girls ECNL provides, and believe the Boys ECNL will provide a similar pathway for our players to compete at the college level and beyond, while best aligning with our club’s mission and philosophy in developing champions for life.”

Beginning in Fall 2019, Loudoun Soccer’s top boys teams in the 14U through 19U age groups will compete in the ECNL Mid-Atlantic Conference, joining other dominant clubs within the region: BRYC Elite Academy, Carolina Elite Soccer Academy, Carolina Rapids, McLean YSA, NC Fusion, NCFC Youth, South Carolina United, and Wilmington Hammerheads. Expansion into Boys ECNL for the 13U age group is expected to commence in the Fall 2019 season also. Membership in the league will yield opportunities to attend ECNL National Events and to advance to the post-season Elite National Premier League (ENPL) Playoffs, along with attending competitive tournaments like Jefferson Cup.

Loudoun Soccer will continue to field Travel teams in the Club Champions League (CCL), National Capital Soccer League (NCSL), and Old Dominion Soccer League (ODSL). Loudoun Soccer will no longer field teams in US Soccer’s Boys Development Academy for the 2019/20 season.

Loudoun Soccer’s Executive Director, Colin Smith, stated: “The ECNL’s core values and player-centered programming perfectly complement our own. Our Board of Directors, operations staff, and technical staff are in complete alignment in believing this move directs our players to a pathway for success both on and off the field.”

A town hall meeting will be scheduled for families to learn about the Boys ECNL, and Talent ID Sessions and coaching staff will be announced in the near future.

The Boys Elite Clubs National League (Boys ECNL) was founded to improve the daily environment for boys youth soccer players through a collaborative club-based development program featuring competition, player identification, and coaching and club development platforms. The Boys ECNL will include both regular season conference games and cross-conference events, and qualifying teams from the Boys ECNL will advance to the post-season Elite National Premier League (ENPL) Playoffs.

The Boys ECNL is based on the values of grass-roots collaboration and innovation, and supports the independence and freedom of coaches and clubs to fully manage the development path for their players, including the system and style of play, the competitive calendar, and all aspects of the development path. The Boys ECNL will raise standards in training, competition, club organization, and coaching in a holistic development program.

The Boys ECNL is led by a Board of Directors elected by the member clubs.